Play all audios:
Police in South 24-Parganas arrested a 27-year-old man on Saturday after residents saw him walking through a village holding the severed head of a woman believed to be his sister-in-law,
authorities said. Bimal Mondal was detained by officers from Basanti police station in South 24-Parganas district, about 100 km (60 miles) south of Kolkata, after frightened villagers locked
themselves indoors and called the police, a senior investigating officer said. “The suspect was carrying a machete in one hand and the victim’s head in the other,” the officer said,
speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to discuss the case publicly. “He offered no resistance when we arrived.” Early inquiries suggest the killing may have been
triggered by a domestic dispute, but detectives are examining other possible motives and plan to seek a psychiatric evaluation of the suspect, police said. The victim, identified by
neighbours only as Mondal’s 35-year-old sister-in-law, lived in the same household. Forensic specialists have sealed off the family’s home while they search for the rest of the body and
gather evidence. Footage filmed by onlookers and shared locally shows terrified residents slamming doors and windows as the blood-stained man walks along an unpaved lane. Advertisement
Police have appealed to the public not to circulate the video. The killing has shocked the rural community of about 15,000 people. Local elected representative Soumen Adhikari said officials
would meet women’s groups this week to discuss safety concerns. “People here have never seen anything like this in broad daylight,” he told reporters. No formal charges had been filed by
late Saturday, but Mondal is expected to appear before a magistrate on Sunday, police added. Advertisement Advertisement